Review Sections

Design and FeaturesD-Link's DIR-635 is a compact wireless router packed in a silver-trimmed black case of a very modest design. Three aerials are used for improved transmission speed and accuracy, however, the model does not include an internal modem, so it's probably best suited to add a wireless capability to your existing system rather than replacing it. Setting up the device was easy enough and D-Link provides plenty of advice on the browser-based configuration pages, but the menus are quite busy and the help may prove distracting.

The router features port and IP forwarding, scheduled firewall settings and Web content filtering. Web filtering is enabled as a simple black/white-listing customised by the user. QoS control and WEP/WPA security are naturally present also.

It's great to see D-Link have the common sense to print default IP and log-in details on the bottom of the device to make setting up a little easier — although for security purposes you may want to change these during initial set-up.

PerformanceOur performance testing on wireless routers consists of checking wireless throughput speeds over a variety of distances between a notebook and the router. To test the router it is located at one end of a 55-metre long hallway, while the connection to the notebook is tested at five-metre increments by transferring a 1MB file between it and a wired PC, using the application Qcheck.